editorNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94NPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Milo MilesThu, 22 Feb 2018 00:47:48 +0000Milo Mileshttp://wyso.org
Milo MilesCopyright 2017 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air . TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. Music critic Milo Miles has a review of "Afrobeats Hot Hits." The collection introduces a type of African fusion that melds electronics, voices and rhythms. MILO MILES, BYLINE: I became a music obsessive in part because the parade of new sounds seemed endless. So I'm always thrilled when an album establishes a new music twist. With "Afrobeats Hot Hits," I'm also excited because it proves collections can make the case for a style not just by confirming your affections but by overturning your objections. "Afrobeats" is a new mash-up of Jamaican dancehall, soca, hip-hop and polyrhythms from Ghana and Nigeria. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ILEKE") TIWA SAVAGE: (Singing) It's Tiwa Savage - gospel on the beat. All right, let's go. He's liking my pretty face and everything else from my waist down. Like Iyanya says, all the boys are just loving my waist down. I know what to do. I do - don't care what they do.'Afrobeats' Offers A Sensual Blend Of Electronics, Vocals And Rhythmshttp://wyso.org/post/afrobeats-offers-sensual-blend-electronics-vocals-and-rhythms
100820 as http://wyso.orgTue, 03 Oct 2017 18:07:00 +0000'Afrobeats' Offers A Sensual Blend Of Electronics, Vocals And RhythmsMilo MilesCopyright 2017 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air . TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. Music critic Milo Miles has a review of a new collection of synthesizer dance music from the Cape Verde Islands recorded in the '70s and '80s. He says the music sweeps you up with energy and rhythm and reveals an international modernism not well known outside Cape Verde. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) MILO MILES, BYLINE: Popular music anthologies that collect a span of various performers can deliver a special revelation. They can uncover a whole world of music through an inspired selection of tracks expertly programmed. The retrospective collection "Synthesize The Soul" is subtitled "Astro-Atlanta Hypnotica From The Cape Verde Islands 1973-1988," which sounds to me like a direct echo of the landmark garage rock "Nuggets" anthology from 1972. "Synthesize The Soul" will not make pop history like "Nuggets," but it's as much a surprise and a perfectly paced seductive dance party. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "E BO'Synthesize The Soul' Offers A Perfectly Paced Dance Partyhttp://wyso.org/post/synthesize-soul-offers-perfectly-paced-dance-party
95349 as http://wyso.orgTue, 16 May 2017 18:00:00 +0000'Synthesize The Soul' Offers A Perfectly Paced Dance PartyMilo MilesCopyright 2017 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air . TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. Music critic Milo Miles has a review of a new album by Sxip Shirey, a performer he calls both eclectic and original. Milo says Shirey's new album mixes experimental and playful music styles in songs that tell stories about an inventive cast of characters. MILO MILES, BYLINE: Everything about Sxip Shirey's "A Bottle Of Whiskey And A Handful Of Bees" indicates it's a 21st century music creation. It was funded in part by a Kickstarter campaign. Individual parts of tracks were recorded in Australia, London and Nashville, among other places, and then assembled. And it's not out of place for a credit to read ice cube organ built from sample of ice cubes in wineglasses. (SOUNDBITE OF SXIP SHIREY'S "LATENCY - JETLAG") MILES: Cleverly dry vocalist Shirey is also quite the multi-instrumentalist, including keyboards, melodic and clarinet, guitar and harmonica. All this range plus his penchant for quirkySxip Shirey's 'Bottle of Whiskey' Is A 21st-Century Music Creationhttp://wyso.org/post/sxip-shireys-bottle-whiskey-21st-century-music-creation
92814 as http://wyso.orgThu, 16 Mar 2017 17:24:00 +0000Sxip Shirey's 'Bottle of Whiskey' Is A 21st-Century Music CreationMilo MilesCopyright 2016 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air . TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. Music critic Milo Miles has a review of a new album by Mahalia Jackson called "Moving On Up A Little Higher." It contains 22 never-released tracks from the 1940s and '50s, when Jackson became the most famous gospel singer in the world. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "THERE'S BEEN A GREAT CHANGE IN ME") MAHALIA JACKSON: (Singing) And there's a great change in me, great change in me. I am so happy. I am so free 'cause Jesus brought me out of darkness into the marvelous light. Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, the great change in me. There is a... MILO MILES, BYLINE: In the '50s and early '60s, even music dabblers knew that Elvis Presley was rock 'n' roll, Ray Charles was soul and the Mahalia Jackson was gospel. The latter two were a particularly apt king and queen because Ray Charles infused gospel into rhythm and blues to produce soul and New Orleans native Mahalia Jackson brought enormous blues inflection and passionNew Album Offers A Varied Introduction To 'Queen of Gospel' Mahalia Jacksonhttp://wyso.org/post/new-album-offers-varied-introduction-queen-gospel-mahalia-jackson
87357 as http://wyso.orgTue, 18 Oct 2016 17:27:00 +0000New Album Offers A Varied Introduction To 'Queen of Gospel' Mahalia JacksonMilo MilesCopyright 2016 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air . DAVE DAVIES, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. Music critic Milo Miles has a review of a new anthology devoted to the pioneer African bandleader of the '40s and '50s, E. T. Mensah. He was called the King of Highlife, an offshoot of jazz that, for years, was the most popular style of music in southern Africa. Here's Milo's review. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "KWAME NKRUMAH") E T MENSAH AND THE TEMPOS: (Singing in foreign language). MILO MILES, BYLINE: If I told you there was an African bandleader with the touring and organizing skills of a Count Basie, a legacy of spin-off performers as rich as Duke Ellington and a historical influence not unlike Louis Armstrong, and that he even jammed once with Louis Armstrong, you have to ask - who can this be? The answer is E. T. Mensah from Ghana, known as the King of Highlife. The reason Mensah could be so accomplished and yet remain rather obscure in America is because he retired by the 1980s, just as'King of Highlife Anthology' Finally Does Justice To African Bandleader Mensah http://wyso.org/post/king-highlife-anthology-finally-does-justice-african-bandleader-mensah
85387 as http://wyso.orgWed, 24 Aug 2016 17:41:00 +0000'King of Highlife Anthology' Finally Does Justice To African Bandleader Mensah Milo MilesCopyright 2016 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air . TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. As the Olympics nears its conclusion, we have some music from Brazil. Bossa nova was the most popular Brazilian music in America in the 1960s. And it influenced American pop music and jazz. Since then, bossa nova has faded from the American scene, but it never really went away. GROSS: Music critic Milo Miles has a review of a new album from the contemporary Brazilian ensemble Bossacucanova. (SOUNDBITE OF OS CARIOCAS AND BOSSACUCANOVA SONG, "BERIMBAU") MILO MILES, BYLINE: Other surprises about this collection are also notable. For one, it's the finest job of assembling a best-of that I've heard in a long time. Current single-track obsessions have indeed damaged the legacy of superlative surveys. "The Best Of Bossacucanova" has captivating flow that never lets up, never gets derailed by an off-base track and satisfies all the way. You really could play the whole thing at a party and have anBossacucanova's 'Best Of' Album Pulses With Lovely, Lively Musichttp://wyso.org/post/bossacucanovas-best-album-pulses-lovely-lively-music
85148 as http://wyso.orgThu, 18 Aug 2016 17:28:00 +0000Bossacucanova's 'Best Of' Album Pulses With Lovely, Lively MusicMilo MilesCopyright 2016 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air .Naftule's Dream Returns, With A Fleshy, Folkie New Albumhttp://wyso.org/post/naftules-dream-returns-fleshy-folkie-new-album
81943 as http://wyso.orgWed, 01 Jun 2016 18:10:00 +0000Naftule's Dream Returns, With A Fleshy, Folkie New AlbumMilo MilesCopyright 2016 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air .Musicians Pay Tribute To Blind Willie Johnson On 'God Don't Never Change'http://wyso.org/post/musicians-pay-tribute-blind-willie-johnson-god-dont-never-change
80658 as http://wyso.orgFri, 29 Apr 2016 17:31:00 +0000Musicians Pay Tribute To Blind Willie Johnson On 'God Don't Never Change'Milo MilesCopyright 2016 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air . Transcript TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. Master percussionist Roman Diaz has releases his debut album as a leader called "L'o Da Fun Bata." Diaz arrived in New York from Havana, Cuba in 1999 and has since become a mainstay in the avant-garde jazz and Afro-Cuban music communities. Milo says this new album is the best presentation he's ever heard of musical ceremonies honoring deities transplanted from Nigeria to Cuba. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "ELEGUA") ROMAN DIAZ: (Singing in foreign language). MILO MILES, BYLINE: It's easy to forget when oceans of music are available for streaming at any time but certain powerful styles are tough to make effective as straight recordings. Muslim Sufi music, for instance, can be mildly engrossing as pure sound but only clicks when it's experienced along with the whirling, hypnotic dancers. For me, an even more confounding example are musical ceremonies attached to the Afro-Cuban religiousRoman Diaz Makes A Spiritual Statement With 'L'ó Dá Fún Bàtá'http://wyso.org/post/roman-diaz-makes-spiritual-statement-l-d-f-n-b-t
78481 as http://wyso.orgTue, 08 Mar 2016 20:10:00 +0000Roman Diaz Makes A Spiritual Statement With 'L'ó Dá Fún Bàtá'Milo MilesLizzo Brings Ideas, Humor And Sass To 'Big Grrrl Small World'http://wyso.org/post/lizzo-brings-ideas-humor-and-sass-big-grrrl-small-world
77046 as http://wyso.orgWed, 03 Feb 2016 18:56:00 +0000Lizzo Brings Ideas, Humor And Sass To 'Big Grrrl Small World'Milo MilesCopyright 2015 NPR. To see more, visit Transcript TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. Music critic Milo Miles has a review of the debut album by Banda De Los Muertos. Milo says this band updates traditional Mexican dance party folk music for modern American listeners. (SOUNDBITE OF BANDA DE LOS MUERTOS SONG) MILO MILES, BYLINE: Among the liveliest types of modern music are brass bands, veterans and newcomers, who are full of juice and present fresh feeling workouts year after year. A lot of this activity involves reimagining traditional forms. The earliest transformations involved Klezmer, then Balk and Roma groups burst into new vitality. Now, a pair of multi-instrumentalists in Brooklyn, Oscar Noriega and Jacob Garchik have revitalized Banda, a Mexican style Noriega grew up listening to with his immigrant parents and playing in a band with his brothers. Noriega and Garchik call their new group Banda De Los Muertos, and their leadoff original instrumental on the group's debut, Unadulterated Brass-Band Fun On Banda De Los Muertos' Debut Albumhttp://wyso.org/post/unadulterated-brass-band-fun-banda-de-los-muertos-debut-album
71537 as http://wyso.orgWed, 23 Sep 2015 18:55:00 +0000Unadulterated Brass-Band Fun On Banda De Los Muertos' Debut AlbumMilo MilesCopyright 2015 Fresh Air. To see more, visit . Transcript DAVID BIANCULLI, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. In Argentina, tango singer Carlos Gardel remains the country's most famous pop-star, even though he died young in a plane crash 80 years ago. Music critic Milo Miles reviews a new collection of Gardel's recordings, which Milo says will introduce the singer to a new worldwide audience. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "MANO A MANO") CARLOS GARDEL: (Singing in Spanish). MILO MILES, BYLINE: Many music fans could name at least one famous tango instrumentalist, Astor Piazzolla. Far fewer, I suspect, would be able to name even one tango singer. But if you are a tango enthusiast, there is far and away one vocalist, the timeless Carlos Gardel. Tango was arguably the first international music craze with its potent combination of dance and dramatic tunes. And Gardel became its voice, celebrated in New York and Paris. After all, he was born in France, in 1890, before emigrating with a single mother to Buenos Carlos Gardel's Tango-Cowboy Legacy Is 'Reborn And Remastered' http://wyso.org/post/carlos-gardels-tango-cowboy-legacy-reborn-and-remastered
70727 as http://wyso.orgFri, 04 Sep 2015 17:45:00 +0000 Carlos Gardel's Tango-Cowboy Legacy Is 'Reborn And Remastered' Milo MilesCopyright 2015 NPR. To see more, visit Transcript TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. Music critic Milo Miles has a review of the latest release from Bassekou Kouyate, a veteran bandleader and musician from Mali. Milo says rock and soul come together on his band's fourth album "Ba Power." (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "WAATI") NGONI BA: (Singing in foreign language). MILO MILES, BYLINE: This song "Waati" by Bassekou Kouyate and his band Ngoni Ba warns, be prepared, there is a time for everything. And, I would add, not always the time you expect. The cliche structure of a popular musician's career has the start filled with wild and noisy recordings that overtime settle down, mature and become more reflective. That has not been the case with Mali's Bassekou Kouyate. Born in 1966, Kouyate comes from a venerable line of musicians called griots, a cultural tradition in which the men play the lute-like ngoni and the women do the singing. Kouyate was enough of a prodigy among his many brothers thatMalian Bandleader Bassekou Kouyate Merges Rock And Soul In 'Ba Power'http://wyso.org/post/malian-bandleader-bassekou-kouyate-merges-rock-and-soul-ba-power
66716 as http://wyso.orgWed, 03 Jun 2015 20:43:00 +0000Malian Bandleader Bassekou Kouyate Merges Rock And Soul In 'Ba Power'Milo MilesThere's a new entry in the ongoing series of Rough Guide music anthologies called Latin Rare Groove Volume 2 . The mostly instrumental cuts draw on salsa, funk, soul and rock from vintage and new performers. Fresh Air music critic Milo Miles surveys the terrain and wonders what exactly to call this combination. Copyright 2015 NPR. To see more, visit Transcript TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. There's a new entry in the ongoing series of Rough Guide music anthologies called "Latin Rare Groove Volume 2." The mostly intrumental cuts draw on salsa, funk, soul and rock from the past few decades. Music critic Milo Miles has a survey of the terrain and wonders what exactly to call this combination. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) MILO MILES, BYLINE: "Latin Rare Grooves Volume 2" includes releases from the 1960s and '70s, but also currents tracks from performers who continued the tradition of Latin fusion music, but I feel that the collection is misnamed. The term rare groove originally applied to RRare Latin Grooves Excavated In Anthologyhttp://wyso.org/post/rare-latin-grooves-excavated-anthology
63950 as http://wyso.orgWed, 01 Apr 2015 18:55:00 +0000Rare Latin Grooves Excavated In AnthologyMilo MilesCan you re-invent lively pop from the distant past? Fresh Air music critic Milo Miles says the songwriting team Tennis does just that with their new third album, Ritual in Repeat . Copyright 2014 NPR. To see more, visit Transcript TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. Can you reinvent lively pop from the distant past? Music critic Milo Miles says the songwriting team Tennis does just that with their new third album, called "Ritual In Repeat." Tennis is singer Alaina Moore and guitarist Patrick Riley. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "I'M CALLIN') TENNIS: (Singing) Tonight they trace a fragile curve. The dim horizon that you serve. Holy movement, holy sound. A whisper rising from the ground. It's saying let me in, I'm callin'. Come on and let me in, I'm callin'. Can you feel it? Night is falling. I'm callin', I'm callin'. And now I... MILO MILES, BYLINE: Alaina Moore and Patrick Riley are clearly passionate fans of the rock and soul sounds of the early '60s girl groups and Brill Building songwritersFor Duo Tennis, Pop Is A Natural Languagehttp://wyso.org/post/duo-tennis-pop-natural-language
55538 as http://wyso.orgMon, 15 Sep 2014 17:15:00 +0000For Duo Tennis, Pop Is A Natural LanguageMilo MilesIn the early 1960s when soul star Sam Cooke had his own record label, SAR, he recorded songs by his younger brother, L.C. Cooke. Ten of the tracks were supposed to become L.C.'s debut album in 1964. The release was postponed, then Sam Cooke was killed, SAR went out of business and L.C.'s album fell into limbo. Now, 50 years later, The Complete SAR Records Recordings has appeared. Fresh Air critic Milo Miles examines this lost piece of history. Copyright 2014 NPR. To see more, visit Transcript TERRY GROSS, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. In the early 1960s when soul star Sam Cooke had his own label called SAR Records, he produced recordings by his younger brother, L.C. Cooke. Ten of the tracks were supposed to become L.C.'s debut album in 1964. Sam Cooke was killed that year. SAR eventually went out of business in L.C.'s album was never made. A new collection of L.C.'s recordings for SAR has been released, and music critic Milo Miles has the review. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "THE LOVER") L.C. COOKE:A Lost Piece Of Soul History Appearshttp://wyso.org/post/lost-piece-soul-history-appears
53770 as http://wyso.orgTue, 05 Aug 2014 19:36:00 +0000A Lost Piece Of Soul History AppearsMilo MilesThe New York City band Golem describe their music as punk-klezmer. Music critic Milo Miles says that on the group's new album, Tanz , they mange to find new ways to balance urban irreverence with folk tradition. Copyright 2014 NPR. To see more, visit Transcript DAVE DAVIES, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. The New York City band Golem described their music as punk klezmer. Music critic Milo Miles says that on the group's new album "Tanz," they managed to find new ways to balance urban irreverence with folk tradition. (SOUNDBITE OF UNIDENTIFIED SONG) GOLEM: (Singing) Roll the tape. (Singing in foreign language). MILO MILES: In the 1970s, when the American music market was fascinated by roots, the Eastern European mix of styles known as klezmer awoke from a 50 year sleep. Klezmer was meant to be party music, for dancing all night at Jewish weddings. But revival klezmer had a careful preservationist atmosphere. And no matter how expertly done, a party designed by your grandparents can't be allGolem Ain't Your Grandparents' Klezmer http://wyso.org/post/golem-aint-your-grandparents-klezmer
50854 as http://wyso.orgTue, 03 Jun 2014 19:00:00 +0000Golem Ain't Your Grandparents' Klezmer Milo MilesThe same week that Neil Young introduced his Pono music player designed to spark a huge boost in audio fidelity, I listened for the first time to a recording of a Grateful Dead concert I attended almost 40 years ago. And I realized that passions about good-sounding music go through cycles. Today, the lo-fi medium is MP3s through earbuds. Back when the Dead show happened, it was amplified rock 'n' roll in sports arenas. The one time the Grateful Dead ever performed in Montana was at the Harry Adams Field House at the University of Montana in Missoula, where I was about to graduate from college. This was a major event, since rock shows were rare around Montana back then — you had to motor to San Francisco or at least Denver to have more than minimal live rock experience. I knew one thing about the few rock concerts I had seen: The force of the music could overwhelm the senses, but it sounded lousy, blaring and distorted, with often incomprehensible vocals. It happened in spaces designedFight Sound With Sound: Grateful Dead's Arena Combathttp://wyso.org/post/fight-sound-sound-grateful-deads-arena-combat
47833 as http://wyso.orgMon, 31 Mar 2014 19:47:00 +0000Fight Sound With Sound: Grateful Dead's Arena CombatMilo MilesThe appearance of Penny Penny's Shaka Bundu in the American market is welcome not only in itself, but also as a sign of a larger trend. Five or six years ago, it was clear the music business was going into long-term sales decline, and I was certain that a prime victim of that would be African pop. The established imports of the '80s and '90s would be available as MP3 downloads, but surely new discoveries and reissues would slow to a trickle, if not cease altogether. I'm grateful that that has simply not happened. Several European companies are doing honorable work bringing vintage sides to light, and surely an American leader is the label Awesome Tapes From Africa , who brought out Shaka Bundu late last year. Penny Penny's 1994 debut reflected a contemporary technological revolution in music. Dance-club hits from England and the U.S. were particularly big in South Africa, and they proved that modern sound didn't need fancy instruments, just plucky small studios and canny producers. TheBefore He Joined Congress, A South African Janitor's Disco Pasthttp://wyso.org/post/he-joined-congress-south-african-janitors-disco-past
45589 as http://wyso.orgThu, 06 Feb 2014 22:12:00 +0000Before He Joined Congress, A South African Janitor's Disco PastMilo Mileshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56qo9sinSdc In the early '60s, Dave Van Ronk, still in his 20s, had become the grand honcho of the Washington Square folk scene in New York. He never managed to get as far beyond that role as he deserved. (His autobiography, The Mayor of MacDougal Street , helped inspire Joel and Ethan Coen's new movie, Inside Llewyn Davis .) Perhaps the fine new anthology Down in Washington Square will give Van Ronk, who died in 2002, a long-needed boost. Van Ronk was not a rambler like Woody Guthrie or even a New York City outsider like Bob Dylan , so it's understandable that he would see the folk-music-revival movement as his favorite neighborhood phenomenon. Besides, he never considered himself strictly a folk performer: His first love was traditional jazz tunes. Down in Washington Square does a particularly fine job of presenting Van Ronk as a conveyer, an apostle even, of diverse modes of old music. It enables him to be black, white, male, female, young, old, aWill The Real Llewyn Davis Please Stand Up? http://wyso.org/post/will-real-llewyn-davis-please-stand
42530 as http://wyso.orgMon, 25 Nov 2013 18:04:00 +0000Will The Real Llewyn Davis Please Stand Up?